Rubbishing Lovely’s reported attacks for the Gandhi family, Maken said that it was the last minute intervention of Sonia Gandhi that had prevented his sacking from Sheila Dikshit’s government.

“I know for sure that Sheila ji wanted to drop him, but Sonia ji intervened. Congress gave him so much. He became the youngest minister in our party and remained so for 10 years. Now he’s chosen to compromise with his ideology. What can I say?”

Leaving the Congress when its days are not “as pleasant” is a “betrayal”, former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today said after the party’s former Delhi unit chief Arvinder Singh Lovely joined the BJP.